1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to apparatus and methods for filling containers with liquid. More specifically, the present invention pertains to automatic handling and filling of drums with liquid utilizing a tubular filling lance through which liquid is transferred to the drum and with orienting apparatus for properly orienting the drum opening or bunghole for engagement by the tubular filling lance.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are many designs and methods for filling drums with liquid. Some of the most successful and efficient designs utilize a tubular filling lance which is operatively connected to a source of liquid and which is vertically moveable by a power device between raised and lowered positions. The lance is positioned above an opening in the drum, commonly referred to as a bunghole, and lowered into the drum for the filling thereof. After the drum is filled, the lance is returned to a fully raised and/or withdrawn position and the bunghole is closed by a closure member commonly referred to as the bung.
In many drum handling and filling methods of the present day, a conveyor system is provided on which the drums may be sequentially moved to various positions, eventually arriving at a filling station in which a tubular filling lance is aligned with the drum bunghole and lowered through the bunghole into the drum for the filling thereof. After the drum is filled, the tubular lance is raised and the drum is moved from the filling station to a capping and sealing station.
One of the problems in providing for automatic handling and filling of drums is proper orientation of the drum as it enters the filling station. Typically, drums are placed on the conveyor system so that the openings or bungholes are randomly oriented. They must then be oriented in some fashion so as to be properly aligned with the tubular filing lance when they reach the filling station. Otherwise, the lance would not be capable of properly engaging the bungholes for filling of the drum.
A few designs have been developed for orienting drums prior to the filling thereof. One such apparatus is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,583. However, in this design the drum is not aligned until it reaches the filling station and it requires a sensing mechanism to be pivoted into position for orienting of the drum and then out of position to allow engagement by the filling lance. This slows down the operation of a system. It also utilizes orientation apparatus which includes drive wheels which engage the cylindrical surface of the drum to rotate the drum into proper alignment or orientation. Since the lower end of the drum usually rests on a conveyor, any slack or play in the conveyor itself may result in misalignment of the bunghole. This would be particularly true if the drum were aligned prior to reaching a filling station.
The present invention provides apparatus for automatically handling and filling drums the upper ends of which are provided with bungholes for filling of the drums with liquid. An elongated conveyor is provided on which the drums may be sequentially moved to an orienting station, a filling station and a capping and sealing station.
The orienting station includes a lifting device, a rotating device and a sensing device. The lifting device lifts the drum off of the conveyor and the rotating device rotates the drum about a vertical axis until the sensing device indicates that the drum bunghole is properly positioned for further movement to the filling station.
With the bunghole properly oriented, a tubular filling lance, which is operatively connected to a source of liquid, is moved by a power device from a raised position above the drum to a lowered position in which the filling lance is coaxially aligned with and extends through the bunghole into the drum for filling the drum with liquid. After a weighing device indicates that the drum is filled, the filling lance is returned to a raised position by the power device and the filled drum is moved to the capping and sealing station where the bunghole may be capped and sealed.